Instructions
Read through each section carefully and answer the questions to the best of your ability. This worksheet explores the differences between living and non-living things and the specific characteristics that define life.
Part 1: Sorting It Out
Look at the list of items below. Sort them into the correct columns in the table: "Living" or "Non-Living".
Snail Rock Cloud Bacteria River Seed Tree Computer Fire Mold
| Living | Non-Living |
|---|---|
Challenge Question: Choose one item you classified as Living and one item you classified as Non-Living. Explain your reasoning for each choice.
1. Living Item ( ): I classified it as living because &-
2. Non-Living Item ( ): I classified it as non-living because &_ &-
Part 2: Characteristics of Life
All living things share seven key characteristics. A common way to remember them is the acronym MRS GREN. Match the characteristic from Column A with its correct definition in Column B by writing the correct letter in the space provided.
| Column A: Characteristic | Answer | Column B: Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Movement | ______ | A. Creating more of the same kind of organism. |
| 2. Respiration | ______ | B. Getting rid of waste products from the body. |
| 3. Sensitivity | ______ | C. Taking in or creating food for energy. |
| 4. Growth | ______ | D. An action by an organism or part of an organism causing a change of position or place. |
| 5. Reproduction | ______ | E. The chemical reactions that break down nutrient molecules in living cells to release energy. |
| 6. Excretion | ______ | F. A permanent increase in size and dry mass. |
| 7. Nutrition | ______ | G. The ability to detect and respond to changes in the internal or external environment. |
Part 3: What's Happening Here?
Read the following scenarios. Identify which of the seven life characteristics (MRS GREN) is being described. Some scenarios may demonstrate more than one!
1. A sunflower turns its head to follow the path of the sun during the day.
Characteristic(s): __________________________________________________________________
2. A bear eats fish and berries all summer and fall, storing fat. It then sleeps through the winter.
Characteristic(s): __________________________________________________________________
3. You touch a hot stove and immediately pull your hand away.
Characteristic(s): __________________________________________________________________
4. A single yeast cell divides, creating a new, identical yeast cell.
Characteristic(s): __________________________________________________________________
5. A small sapling becomes a giant oak tree over the course of 100 years.
Characteristic(s): __________________________________________________________________
Part 4: Critical Thinking
A car can move, it uses fuel (like nutrition), and it produces waste from its exhaust pipe (like excretion). Based on the seven characteristics of life, explain why a car is not considered a living thing.
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Answer Key
Part 1: Sorting It Out
| Living | Non-Living |
|---|---|
|
|
Challenge Question: Answers will vary. A good answer will connect the item to one or more of the life characteristics. Example: "I classified a tree as living because it grows, it makes its own food (nutrition), and it reproduces using seeds." or "I classified a rock as non-living because it cannot move on its own, reproduce, or grow."
Part 2: Characteristics of Life
- Movement: D
- Respiration: E
- Sensitivity: G
- Growth: F
- Reproduction: A
- Excretion: B
- Nutrition: C
Part 3: What's Happening Here?
- Movement, Sensitivity (Responding to the stimulus of light)
- Nutrition
- Sensitivity, Movement (Responding to the stimulus of heat)
- Reproduction
- Growth
Part 4: Critical Thinking
(Answers should include several of the following points.)
Although a car shows some signs that seem like life, it is not a living thing because it does not have all seven characteristics. For example, a car cannot grow on its own. It cannot reproduce to make other cars. It cannot respond to its environment (sensitivity) on its own without a driver. It is also not made of cells, which is the basic unit of all known living things. To be classified as living, an object must possess all the characteristics of life.